Numinous Oddities
by Stephethx
Summary: Misa is 'killed in action' at the worst possible time for our could-be-would-be killer. Consequently L's ultimate fate is postponed. In this nearly parallel alternate universe, what if things had gone just a bit differently?
1. Demolition

Well this is my first fanfiction.  
Does this make any sense to you?  
To be clear I am not above reviews.

Also-- **D I S C L A I M E R**  
I do not own L, Raito, Misa, Rem, Death Note, Japan or anything else that could be pinned on me for writing this, though it should be obvious that they belong to Ohba and Obata. 'Ahah.. Well, except Japan. That would be the next step.

--

He stood crouched low outside the large building-- Or rather; he stood crouched low outside the semi-demolished remains of what could once have been called a large building, though now resembled more a pile of rubble. Lifting his head he remained hunched, shifting his blank gaze up onto the damages. Small pieces of clinging debris fell at random, reflecting the Japanese Metropolitan lights against the night sky. This was depressing.

It was depressing because they could not possibly continue the Kira Case as they would have normally within the building. They obviously could not use the building as there headquarters if the building itself was unusable. He also noted that this had happened suspiciously close to the capture of Higuchi for the murder of countless criminals under the alias of 'Kira.' Even more suspiciously he had died only moments later.

How Higuchi had carried out the unusual and previously thought impossible brand of murder had been unknown until only an hour before. The murder weapon in question, what appeared to be a simple black notebook was most likely the only evidence in the Case. Its importance in the Case considered vital he had kept it safe the best way he'd known how, slipping it beneath his baggy white shirt where it lay cold against his chest.

He had to admit that it was uncomfortable having an object of such great evil so close to his person, actually in direct contact with his skin; this object could kill people, it held the aura of a gun. But in the detective's mind he did not have a choice in the matter. Higuchi had been caught, and with the prior true it could only have meant that if Yagami Raito had ever been Kira he would soon retrieve his memories, if he had not done so already.

In truth Yagami Raito _had_ done so already, this was unbeknownst to the detective he was still chained to. Of course the recently reinstated serial killer was not about to give himself away. He knew he would have to put on a show for the detective in a short moment, acting shocked and panicked at the scene before him; though it was not as if he wasn't already surprised by the unfolding events. To be quite frank he was deeply frustrated, for whomever it was who'd sent this creature into the human realm had effectively thrown a wrench into the works of his 'master plan.' That was alright, he was a genius.

L -for there is no one else it could have possibly been- shifted his gaze onto the other male, Raito who appeared to be staring blankly and wide eyed at the destruction. The shock of his emotions would very soon catch up to him the detective knew, and braced himself for Raito's delayed reaction. So as if it were a queue in a screenplay both began to act in the game of deception they scarcely realized the other knew the other was playing as well.

"Raito-kun…?" The dark haired male stood straight, though almost immediately after was slumped once more in his usual fashion, speaking in his monotone voice.

"Wh-What happened!?" He stared up at the sky rise, which had been damaged beyond repair. "We were only gone for a minute! We come back and there was some sort of earthquake? Or a bomb or--… Misa." He choked out the name, his shock genuine for the most part.

At the former second Kira's name he'd realized the situation they'd left the up and coming model in had been a deadly one. They had, or rather L had chained her to a chair. Not very significant at the time but now as he stared up at the building it came to her mind that she was probably dead, as they too would've been if they'd been in the building as well. He did not love Misa, he never had. Not even in the slightest had he loved her, yet she had been a crucial pawn in his plan and with her gone said plan came crashing down as the head quarters had.

The great detective had been about to ask if Raito would please calm down, but the same realization had also just occurred to him. The reason he had impended her movement in the first place was for her own safety, or at least it was what he would like to believe. Behind Raito loomed the Shinigami Rem, who made what was the creature's equivalent to a frown. What about Misa? She was unsure what had become of the girl after having to follow that swine of a human Higuchi.

The death god suddenly became anxious to know what had become of the model, but he couldn't just ask the human she possessed. Ryuuzaki, actually the whole investigations team had touched the note and asking anything of the sort could put Misa in danger. L reached up and began to nibble of his thumbnail, a habit of his, he had a calm understanding of the situation; save for some paranormal details.

"Misa-chan could not possibly have escaped such a fate Raito-kun." He fiddled with his pale bottom lip, his hollow stare boring into the other male. "It was beyond any human's perception that the building would collapse with only her in it. My condolenc--"

L stopped himself, watching as Raito placed his unchained hand upon the detective's shoulder, applying a painful amount of pressure. The brown haired male's head was tilted forward slightly, his eyes obscured by the fringe of said hair. The detective stared unblinking and emotionless at the youth, even as mild jolts of pain ran from his shoulder. He did not notice the god of death's reaction, or her sudden disappearance.

"Don't, don't say that yet. She might not b-- Don't say it." His hand twitched visibly upon the other's shoulder, a plea to his enemy in his voice through grit teeth.

_If Misa were dead his plan was beyond salvaging. _

_With her dead he could not use Rem to his advantage._

_Now that she was dead this man who stood in his way, literally and figuratively, would not die. _

_With Misa no longer living, Rem would kill him simply to compensate._


	2. Flight

Here I give you a rather belated part two.

Also-- **D I S C L A I M E R**  
I do not own Rem, Ryuku, Zeruogi, L Lawliet, Gelus, Raito, or Misa... Shinigami, the Shinigami King and/or Realm.. Or anything else I mentioned pertaining to Death Note. These things are property of Ohba and Obata.

--

She spread what vaguely resembled her wings, for of course all Shinigami had some sort; they were the means of transportation back into the Shinigami Realm. A thin translucent ashen membrane stretched over the bat-like white skeletal frame, giving them a strange strained look. Logically only the investigations team was able to see her now, and they had probably been too distracted by their annihilated human structure to notice her disappearance. Higuchi was dead and Misa was… Well, if she were dead as the Ryuuzaki man had suggested -or L Lawliet, as was scrawled over his head- she felt she should smite the human Raito to be fair to Misa.

Rem directed her pattern of flight accordingly, ascending towards the 'heavens,' or to be put more accurately the Shinigami Realm. Being native to that realm and not the human one once she was to reach a vague point she would simply pass into it like it was nothing. Any normal human that was to attempt this same feat would only find themselves part of the astronomy, lacking air and gravity, not such a far cry from the Realm of the Dead, but still in their rightful realm none the less. It was much harder for a lesser being to pass on to a higher realm than for the vice versa to occur.

What she was doing was illegal, not only in the eyes of the Shinigami King but also the stone set rules of the Death Note itself. According to the rules she was not to leave the human she was possessing for any long period of time, also against these same rules was to under any circumstance return to the Shinigami Realm without said person's name inscribed into a the Death Note. She was doing both these things knowingly and -though hesitantly- also willingly.

It did not help that she was also in love with Misa Amane. Not even love, the term can be taken the wrong way, more a lasting infatuation that would not subside, regardless of the laws she was breaking and the outlandish feel of the whole situation. This sort of thing simply did not tend to happen, nor was it at all permitted.

This attraction to the human had caused the Shinigami Rem to disregard the important rule above, reentering the Shinigami Realm without killing whom they had possessed first. Rem knew all too well Misa was completely devoted to Raito, and the god had been all but willing to help the murderer achieve his goals to make Misa happy until this unfortunate chain of events. She also knew if Raito died, Misa would lose the will to live, and so she risked breaking three rules to discover the fate of the young actress before deciding the fate of the young man she possessed.

Her punishment if caught was not set, though breaking several rules at once was high on the list of things a Shinigami should probably really avoid doing if they didn't want to die. Rem was a relatively young Shinigami, and never before been punished, she had had no reason to have been prior to this. But even so she knew there were nine levels of punishment, four of which included death. She'd often wondered how besides of course how Gelus had died, and pure laziness a Shinigami could actually be killed; of course there had to be ways, but she did not wish to trade her own life for such knowledge.

As she flew these were the types of complex and just plain confusing thoughts that occupied her mind. The rules she'd broken, why she'd broken them, how to avoid being fond out and the more pressing anxiety of the whereabouts of Miss Amane. This information was an infinite amount of times easier to do in the Realm she belonged to.

So focused she was on the task at hand that she did not notice the one flying toward her. He did not notice her either. He was far too busy watching the destruction below which if she was to have looked down for any amount of time she'd have noticed as well. Dissuaded as they both were it not a surprise to anyone watching -Not that anyone below could even see them- that collided in the air.

Rem was knocked off course, thoughts spilling into a mess of confusion. A bird would've flown right through her none the wiser, only another Shinigami could've possibly hit her. Ryuku was the only one she could think of to have travelled down here, but he was still in the Shinigami Realm. It wasn't Ryuku.

The other Shinigami regained his balance, mildly confused as well. He reached up, fiddling with the feathered headdress that had nearly been knocked off during the collision. He did this with his right hand for he could not with his left, his left hand had at one point in time been replaced by a hook; now old and rusted with age.

"Zeruogi?" She asked in vague recognition, recalling having met the other once. It had not been a very interesting conversation. A chance meeting really; just as there encounter was now, though this one would prove more interesting. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, that right!" He replied after a moment of confusion himself. "You're the one who been running around with some human, so of course you wouldn't know." His tone was odd, not like most Shinigami in regards to humans, it sounded as if he held interest in them.

Rem was grateful the Shinigami didn't ask for her notebook, it the equivalent to a passport to the Shinigami realm. Really it was the key to get in, but this Shinigami didn't care about that; and something about the tone in his voice pushed her to ask a question. "Of course I wouldn't know what?"

Zeruogi was far too entertained with what was going on nearly directly below them in the Metropolis of Japan to bother answering, he even went so far as to chuckle as one point. So as one might look up after they pass someone doing the same on the street Rem looked down.

To her great surprise she found that not just the one building has been destroyed, but quite a few more. Even in the darkness she could see the piles of rubble trail straight across, almost if someone had strode right through, someone huge. Immediately after she saw the great, oddly proportioned creature, it had just managed to take flight and was flying low; demolishing the tops of some unfortunate buildings.

She could see this only because she was of the same realm. This was a Shinigami-like creature and the human's below were no doubt in a state of confusion, unable to see the creature. But this wasn't right, a creature such as this shouldn't have had the permission to enter the human realm under any circumstance; it didn't belong here.

"What, what's it doing here?" She tried to mask the shock in her voice, it wasn't like she belonged here either but there was even less place in this realm for such a beast.

"Of course you don't know what happened." He repeated after shaking his head, trying to focus on the question before answering simply. "The old man's been replaced."

_The old man had been replaced._

_There was a new Shinigami king._

_A King that did not care about the rules so very much._

_One who would follow them, or break them if only to relieve his boredom._


	3. Seconds

-- **D I S C L A I M E R**  
I do not own Raito/Light Yagami, Kira, Misa, L Lawliet, Watari, any part of Death Note or the Tokyo Inn Hotel. These things are property of Ohba and Obata.. And whoever owns that hotel I searched up.

--

_He had written a name._

A cheap Tokyo Inn Hotel pen was held by just two long and pale fingers that pinched the rounded end. He was sitting hunched in his particular fashion in a relatively comfortable chair, though he was displeased with the fact that it did not spin around as he would've liked it to. His left hand wrapped tightly around his knee as his hollow stare scrutinized the open book on the coffee stained desk in front of him.

The great detective traced the name with his hollow stare. The name he'd just written for the sake of -himself and- the Kira case. The name "Light Yagami" was carved into the seemingly ordinary right corner of the paper, with such careful, perfect English handwriting that it did the eight letters justice. Raito was no longer the prime suspect in the case but L had decided to write the could be killer's name down regardless of the thirteen day rule, he planned to write his name after Raito died anyway.

_A lot of thinking could be done, in forty seconds._

L sat not quite alone in the small hotel room, from behind him on the bed came the slow steady breathing of the man he expected wouldn't be alive a minute from now. The investigations team, all having their own homes had gone to stay there for the time being. Raito had refused to return with his father to the Yagami Residence, and had somehow talked his way out of doing so. He'd composed excuse upon excuse, some quite ridiculous, but eventually the detective had agreed. How else was he to get immediate results?

A large portion of the downtown had been destroyed, it had been declared the scene of an earthquake, and warnings had been issued for aftershocks until further notice. What confused the detective about this was that he'd felt no such tremors, and would have to ask Watari for the Rictor scale readings around Japan later, _after Raito had died._

It really frustrated the genius that only ten seconds had passed while he'd tried to distract himself with unimportant things he cared very little about. Anxious, he let the pen fall with a very soft thud against the carpeted floor. He watched it's decent, willing it to fall just a bit more slowly. Even so it only took a second, so he still had twenty nine to wait.

He tried fruitlessly to spin himself around on the immovable chair, and ended up shuffling one eighty degrees, peeking over the chair at the bed. The clock on the bedside table read 3:56 AM three fifty six am, and the dark haired detective was surprised Raito had gotten to sleep at all. He'd sat on the bed for the majority of the evening, half watching the detective pour over the note book, but half somewhere else entirely; mentally at least.

L had found Raito's behavior minutely strange. The detective knew of loss, of death and mourning. He'd experienced it in a very cruel manner, at a young age in a large dose; he knew as well as anyone else what death was. He also knew that everyone mourned differently, but Raito did not seem to be doing any such thing, not for Misa anyway.

Raito was not acting as one in mourning would, but more accurately as one who was trying very hard to avoid something. He was acting like someone who had gotten themselves into a situation they really did not want to be in, and was almost desperately searching for means of removing themselves from said situation.

He had become rather withdrawn immediately after the incident, this was normal. But then he had easily emerged from his shell as if for the sole purpose of remaining close to detective, or perhaps the notebook. Which he could not be sure, maybe the youth had even suspected that this was his fate. Not that that mattered much not though, he'd be dead in nineteen seconds.

His thought process had crossed an invisible line without him, and a sense of mea culpa befell him; guilt, regret and remorse. All this even before the death had occurred. His mind worked very closely to that of Kira's, he knew and accepted that. What he didn't want to accept was that he had willing written a name, and not just any name; that of an innocent. Raito had not been proven guilty of any crime and so under court law was innocent. The thirteen day rule freed him and Misa, but L could not allow Kira to go free.

If Kira were free the detective knew he was next on the docket. With him gone although he had heirs he hadn't exactly met them, and they weren't exactly what he had expected from what he could tell. To be completely honest Raito could possibly succeed him better, so if Raito were guilty it was better that they both died. If not a mass murderer would someday rule the whole of mankind.

But then, Raito _wasn't_ Kira. The detective shifted his large dark eyes away from the clock, onto the sleeping figure on the bed. He had not slipped under the covers before drifting off, but had managed to drag a pillow from the headboard. He now laid basically motionless, save for the rise and fall of his chest. This is when L realized he was about to become a murderer, the same type of person he'd sought out to capture and it did not matter in the slightly whether Raito was Kira or not.

Another thing that hardly mattered was that he intended to take his own life afterward, intentions rarely turn out how one plans initially. Well aware that not all of his methods were legal, he did not want to become a murderer. It was at times such as these where he wished to be as sociopathic as the murderer himself, perhaps then he could do what he needed to do without such feelings afterward.

No, that thought had been the last straw; he was acting far too much like Kira for his own liking. Twelve seconds, he stole a lingering glance on the man in his slumber before shifting back in his seat awkwardly to see the book. Then promptly, without giving himself anymore time to think he ripped the corner out, separating the name from the rest of the book.

L was really quite clueless when it came to the notebook. And no matter how impossible it may seem that 'L' and 'clueless' were just used in the same sentence correctly it was still true. All that the detective knew was the rules that had been written inside the notebook, nothing more and definitely nothing less.

There was a rule in the back of the book stating something along the lines of "If you make this note unusable by tearing it up or burning it, all the humans who have touched the note until then will die" and to L this either meant that he was about to die or about to cancel the effects of the notebook. As dramatic irony we know Ryuku wrote this rule and it's obvious to us that it contained no power whatsoever, but being _dramatic_ irony this fact was unbeknownst to L.

If tearing one small piece made the notebook made that piece unusable then perhaps it would cancel the effects of the book, and perhaps not. It could just kill him, though this he doubted, it being such a small piece. In these situations all the detective could think of doing was experiment, and he was a bit pressed on time.

Ripping the piece of paper had made a sudden noise and behind him the sleeping youth stirred. If the detective's eyes had not been fixed wide permanently already they would've widened as he turned to stare at Raito, clutching the bit of paper in his pianistic right hand. The sudden noise had disturbed him, but fortunately not enough to wake him.

Counting backward in his head he folded the fragmented piece of paper up, placing it in his open mouth, quick to swallow. Evidence was not the best of things to have gathered against you when you are guilty, or innocent for that matter. L rid himself of this incriminating support the easiest way possible, for at the moment he was a murderer and despite his intentions already had no plans to be caught.

He waited out the remainder of the time in relative blank of thought. Watching the slow rise and fall of the unconscious man's chest intently, tracing his form, suppressing the nearly overpowering guilt he was feeling for using his friend as a guinea pig in a most likely fatal test. He counted forty seconds from the time he'd finished writing the name, forty one seconds, forty two, and nothing had happened. The great detective's thumb found its way upward, tracing the contour of his lower lip.

At four sixteen am he rolled over in his slumber involuntarily to face the detective sitting and looking oddly like turtle on the chair backwards. Other then that he was still, sleeping soundly until five thirty seven when he opened one eye enough to notice the detective watching him, and groggily a asked him to stop before turning over again and slipping back into his dream world; not awakening long enough to actually have any other conscious thought.

The detective complied, finally shuffling around to face the notebook once more, staring through hollow eyes at the ripped page. He was good at containing his emotion; one such as him had no choice but to. That said, countless emotions ran through him now, some more obscure than others. With great difficulty he pushed them all aside and realized something. He could not confirm what exactly had occurred. Raito was alive that was certain, but how was another matter.

_Had it been the fact that he'd separated the name from the book?  
_

_  
Could it have been that the writing of one's name could've only been effective in their native language?  
_

_  
Or was it something else, something the detective could not have possibly have known about._


	4. Reminisce

_Alright, enter Ryuku. Yes it's a bit odd, bear with me.  
I wanted to put all of Ryuku into one chapter, half way through I realized something. That __**wasn't**__ going to happen.  
So here's part four, enjoy._

_Also-- **D I S C L A I M E R**  
I do not own Ryuku, Rem, Armonia Justin, Gukku, Deridovely, Nu, or any of the other death gods. These beings are property of Ohba and Obata._

--

When the undead apple enthusiast left his former possession of a human in a small ten by six foot cell, he'd never expected this to happen. Nonetheless here he sat, slumped in a ridiculously hyped up chair. A chair that had been carelessly given the title 'Throne,' when in his opinion it was just a pile of bones and rocks, a couple dozen diamonds. It was, in his mind, just a bunch of high quality junk thrown together to look like a chair -or throne if you'd like- just like everything else in the Realm of the Dead.

King of Death, no god thought a C grade Death God had a chance in the world of pulling it off. They had thought that in the King's absence perhaps Nu or Justin would take over, but never Ryuku. It was amazing what boredom and luck could make possible. But Ryuku had had more then just years of his life to bet; fortunate for him he also had apples. The addict had procured these apples from an orchard whose name will be kept confidential due to irrelevancy and lack of information, although they were obviously of the juicy human variety.

Obviously this wasn't completely allowed, not that Ryuku had cared, until he was caught of course. Technically bringing objects from the Human Realm to the Realm of the Dead was about as permitted as dropping one's Death Note into the Human Realm. It was kosher but frowned upon by most other gods, messing with the lesser realms, causing demise and destruction and whatnot. But this prophesized Armageddon of a lesser realm had never stopped a rogue Shinigami beforehand.

There was a rule among Death Gods, referred to most commonly as the eighty two hour rule. This particularly numbered rule stated as follows, "When a God of Death does not possess a human they may not be present in the Shinigami Realm for any amount of time longer than eighty two hours or consequences will ensue." As for these so called consequences not many were sure of what level of punishment they referred to, and even less were willing to find out. The god population in general was based solely upon self preservation it seemed.

Ryuku did not feel that this rule was any threat to him; he'd even consulted Armonia Justin at one point, though even so it was troublesome. If he had had his way at that time he would have simply loitered in the Human Realm until Raito regained his memories, this was just not the case. Upon his return to the higher realm he was struck with a massive pang of withdrawal. Free of bond to Raito he did not see why he couldn't return to stalk a random human and after expiring said human retrieving some apples to bring back to his own Realm, within the time limit of course.

That is exactly what the apple addict did. Quite frequently he would travel down after being hit with the spasms of craving and kill a human. After doing this he would always return to the same orchard, containing those beautiful blood red apples he adored and obtain a few, then swiftly travel back. This ritual was unseen by most and ignored by the few that knew, of course until it became trouble.

He wasn't seen, more accurate would be an apple was eaten in plain sight of a human; the owner of the orchard. Somehow this fact remained unknown to Ryuku until a later time. Apparently the offending human had turned and fled the other way upon seeing apples vanish in large chunks into thin air.

By the time Nu overheard what was going on below whilst peering through an observatory pit the frantic man was raving about some sort of invisible being devouring his harvest to anyone who would listen. Nu had been one of the few to know about Ryuku recurrent endeavors, and his side trips to acquire the fruit and word stretched as quickly as it could through such a thinly spread out community. One thing had led to another and, well, you'll soon be informed.

When living on the barren lands of the Shinigami Realm it is much like a desolate tract version of ancient earth, possibly less civilized. There are no crops to be grown with hardly any need for food at all and again rock and bone are used for houses if one even bothers to make them at all. There were no high-rises, no factories and no wars. The gods lived in packs, small groups. They did this not because they like the others of their group but more just to have someone to gamble with.

There was nothing better to do but sit, eat apples, and sit some more for the new king, and he was left to entertain himself. He would gladly gamble, but Nu wasn't one for gambling, she was the only one besides Daril and Justin who even visited him and to be frank he was a bit afraid of them. They had been of higher rank until recently after all. He hadn't even seen Gukku or Deridovely since the incident, and it wasn't like they would wander all the way up here for him anyway.

The incident, it was almost laughable -actually completely so as he chuckled at the thought- how it was only, on a linear scale, no less than one month ago.

_Only a month ago._

--

"I win again." The goat-like being reached up with a skeletal hand, fiddling with the long horns poking from the animal skull placed over his likened own; there were minute traces of joy in his voice, yes he always won, but he had also always been easily amused.

"G-Gah! I really need to write some names before you kill me," panted the other, who'd just lost another ten years of his life. He had actually felt the reduction this time, which could only mean he did not have an abundant amount to spare. "If you never wrote another name Gukku, you'd still outlive us all."

"I don't know Deri. Ryuku never bets his lifespan anymore, he might live longer if he never loses them."

At this they both looked away from their game, up toward the outlandish rock structure that loomed over them. Ryuku sat at the very top, slumped slightly, staring out desolate horizon. His two friends joked that he'd changed since his first trip to the human realm, but they all knew it was an understatement.

Now back in this perpetual eventide he had nothing to do, and was feeling rather sorry for himself. He felt like so much had happened in one timeframe, the memories of the twelve FBI agents and the female with the alias, L and Amane the second Kira, even Rem all haunted his mind, reminding him of how much more pointless his existence was up here. Up here he was nothing; down there he was just a little more.

"Ryuku come down here! Gamble with us, stop being so weird." Cackled Gukku, Ryuku had tried to explain the situation, but he just didn't seem to understand what was so amusing about the Human Realm.

Before he had time to contemplate on how he would tell off the Shinigami this time an element arose that would soon change his dull and uneventful existence dramatically. The sand-colored stagnant wisp of clouds suddenly became much less still, swirling out of the path of something. This something manifested itself as a fast approaching, shape shifting ink black mass, though if one were to look closely -but of course no one had- the outer portions were slightly translucent.

All self pity left the apple addict immediately at the sight of this. He'd seen that flight pattern only once before; and only one being from this realm could possibly fly so morphemically. This melancholy he'd felt was replaced by what one could accurately call fear. Last time he'd seen this Shinigami it had not been the happiest of occasions.

_The blackness flailed outward. _

_Unseen hands grasped at the dusted rock._

_It began to recede, shrinking into itself. _

_An obscure form stood, looming over the lesser being._

_Black material not of this world suctioned around a certain god._

_King of gods, King of Death. _


	5. Chance

_I must say it was the blind leading the blind in writing this.  
There's really not much information on the Shinigami Realm, or how it all works up there, but I suppose I managed._

Also-- **D I S C L A I M E R**  
I do not own Ryuku, Rem, Armonia Justin, Gukku, Deridovely, Nu, or any of the other death gods. These beings and their realm pertain to Ohba and Obata.

--

_Fear._

That was the emotion that gripped Ruuku as he was forced to bend his head backward in order to see the God of gods looming in front of him. This man did not like him much, he knew this and it was for this reason he was afraid. Scared as he was he wasn't going to show it, not even for the Shinigami King, who more or less fed on fear. So he did what he always did in these sorts of situations. Much like a hyena, he would laugh and put on a show, acting as though nothing in any world could bother him.

"Hey, old man, what's up?" He said with a contained snicker before remembering that, of course, he was an idiot for calling The King an old man. No matter how true it was the nickname wasn't exactly a compliment.

The King whose name had been long forgotten watched Ruuku as if he were prey, motionless save for a slight swaying. Why he was swaying had to have been due to some sort of inner ear problem -perhaps lack of inner ears- for no wind had or ever would reach this place.

The cloth that wrapped around him neck to ankle, flipping over gracefully to look like some sort of robe stopped short of covering his head, hands, and feet, all of which were just long, seemingly brittle, off-white bones. At first glance he looked to be a ridiculously plain god, but Ryuku knew otherwise. He knew that this being was powerful, and could destroy him as he had so many others just for the sheer fun of it.

"Ryuku," The godly king stated in a slightly drawling voice, sounding almost annoyed; he did not tend to make 'house calls'. "You've broken rules."

"What? Impossible, no I know the rules, and I ain't bro--" He was cut off, but not by the typical interruption. The King had lifted a gaunt skinless hand, silencing his excuses.

"You were seen." He said simply, watching the lesser Shinigami freeze at the words, amused at the effect, enjoying the other struggle for explanations he didn't have. It was at times like this, when he was actually speaking that his slight English accent underlaid in his voice, but it was not like anyone had ever paid enough attention to hear it, or care. "More or less only the fruit you were eating. Yes, I know about your little trips, but the more pressing matter is your second illegal Death Note."

"M-my what?" He shot a daring glance to the left, trying to catch sight of Gukku and Deridovely, the thought in his mind that they must've ratted him out. Sidoh was far too clueless to have realized it so soon by himself. 'No honor among thieves' one of the passages had revolved around the statement in one of Raito's human textbooks, and Ryuku wondered if gods were akin to thieves, it wouldn't fit so badly in his opinion.

"That's not illegal, having two I mean." He said slowly in his own defense, he hadn't thought it had been, but perhaps the rules had changed, or perhaps he'd just been too stupid to check in the first place.

"It's not the fact that you have two, but more that you stole it off some poor sap and threw off the balance. Balance is important, without it things tend to fall apart." He nearly lectured, the balance of all thing were important to him. "Yes usually I would simply make you give it back, but you can't do that. I feel a punishment may be in order, a rather high one, can't have you causing even more trouble."

Ryuku knew had to think fast, if he did not his very existence could be at stake, another more forced laugh pushed his way past his large excuse for a mouth. "Why didn't you just say so? I'll give it back. I've just got it hidden somewheres is all."

"Oh, do not lie; especially to me you imbecile. You know as well as I that you're really in no position where you can easily retrieve it, it's buried under orders of the human, 'Yagami Light' if I'm not mistaken."

Ruuku was genuinely surprised. His position was not the best but what the other had just said so nonchalantly in hopes of dispiriting him had made something clear to him. The king wasn't one to care about any of the goings on in the lesser realms, or so he'd thought, but never had he mentioned who exactly he'd been shadowing by name. He hadn't even told his 'closest' friends, yet somehow The King knew.

Through this he realized the King had been decidedly watching his every move, maybe even the last time they'd met. The Kind of Death was not as omnipotent as he might seem. He dealt with the dead, and so was all seeing to the dead, which as one might imagine is not very fun, they being dead and inanimate after all. With this said the King had gone out of his way to see the goings on, out of curiosity, and with this hunch Ryuku thought of a way to buy time.

"Have you ever eaten a human realm apple, _your majesty_? They're really, juicy." He watched for a change in expression that didn't come, his face having no flesh in order to do so. This brought up the irrelevant question of how he even moved at all.

The looming other ceased swaying, crouching ever so slightly as if to see the sitting one better. "And if I haven't?"

"If you haven't we can make a deal, in fact no. Let's make a bet. If you win I'll give you an apple, and if I win I get--"

"Amnesty? How boring, think bigger." It seemed as though the thought of something other then the norm had actually excited the old god, and perhaps the chance at putting everything he had to offer right on the other's nose -or lack there of- only to snatch it away. "If I win I punish you as I see fit, as well as procure your former wager, and if you are to win, you can take my place as King."

By that point there was really nothing Ryuku could do but agree; this was after all the Shinigami King who he'd just strung a bet with. He nodded and reached up into his wings, where he hid a fair amount of apples and among other things a small skull and bone gambling set. But before he could produce the betting material The King had already pulled from somewhere amongst the folds in his tattered, robe-like attire his own set, white as his own fleshless hand. Before anything else could've been done he tossed the tiny bestial remains a short distance, they skittered loudly against the dusty rock.

_Two skulls clattered to an abrupt stop._

_They faced away from each other, as if egging on some childish dispute._

_The new King hadn't time to blink as he watched, dumbfounded._

_Impossibly emotionless, the old man felt an odd sensation._

_The lesser pieces rolled to a stop, admitting defeat._

_A pile of gray, shimmering dust lay motionless beside them._

_Blown by nonexistent wind, was the end of his reign._


End file.
